The Pink Haired Cinderella
by HaRuKi-No-KiMi
Summary: AU A gothic princess plus five royal bachelors...Smells like love is coming to town. Oh, and please don't forget that our princess is one kick-ass Cinderella! Sakura-centric
1. Sweep Her Off Her Feet

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto and Cinderella.

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**The Pink Haired Cinderella**

Chapter 1: Sweep Her Off Her Feet

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_Long time ago in a faraway land there lived fair maiden. She was as lovely as a goddess and as gentle as an angel._

_Her stepmother and stepsisters coveted her for every good she had. Because of this, they treated her with utmost hostility and swore to make her life miserable._

_In spite of these, the maiden never held even the slightest grudge against them. She continued serving her stepmother and stepsisters without complaints._

_Unlike them, she was pure and innocent. She never wished for anyone's misery…neither had she hoped for riches nor fame._

_Her only wish was to meet the prince. She had always dreamt of being able to dance with him…with her Prince Charming._

_The heavens took a quick response to the gentle soul's wish and an invitation from the King to all maidens in town requesting for their presence for a grand ball was announced. The maiden was truly delighted upon hearing the news that she immediately went to her room in search for a dress. She succeeded on finding one - a dress of her deceased mother - albeit it completely looked plain. She repaired the dress with some discarded ornaments of her stepsisters and transformed the simple dress into an elegant gown._

_And so the day for the grand ball came…_

_As soon as the maiden finished all of her chores, she went up to her room to prepare for the ball. Soon enough, the carriage came. Her stepmother and stepsisters were all dressed up and was about leave when the dandified maiden came downstairs and requested for them to wait for her. They were astounded by her sheer beauty. The maiden impeccably overwhelmed the shining jewelries and vivid gowns of her stepsisters._

_And so the stepmother envied the maiden. She knew very well that her daughters would never stand a chance to be the prince's bride if the prince was to see such a lovely maiden._

_Suddenly, one of the stepsisters noticed familiarity with her accessory. The younger sister exclaimed for her ribbons which was on the maiden's dress. They then started mercilessly tearing off the maiden's dress bit by bit as they discerned their respective belongings._

_The stepmother watched in amusement as the maiden helplessly protested on her stepsisters forcefully ripping off her gown. Soon enough, they left the dilapidated girl and headed to the ball._

_And so the forsaken maiden cried…_

…_for all of her dreams were slowly fading away _

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"Very stereotypical…"

A pair of pale hands closed an old story book. The owner of the hands reached up to seize a piece of parchment and a velvet ballpoint pen from a night table nearby.

"It needs a LOT of revision."

.o.O.o.

Here at Leafville, every Sunday morning is a peaceful day.

Take it from the abundant lively cherry blossom trees at bloom, together with the chill zephyr of the spring morning — everything's definitely wonderful… plus the jolly townspeople relishing the glorious day with their loved ones (because it's FREE day!) — What more can be said?

Screams.

Okay, time to break the sublimity…

Everybody ceases on whatever they are doing to lay their eyes on the cause of the commotion.

"OMG! It's her!"

_Black shirt with striped black and white long sleeves._

"For real…"

_Black tattered cargo pants._

"Catch me, oh, I'm gonna faint!"

_Bright cool eyes._

"Oh, she's so cool!"

_Pink short hair._

"It's the Pink Haired Cinderella!"

Enter the dynamic pink head lass of Leafville: Haruno Sakura, the labeled 'Pink Haired Cinderella' of the town. Now, now…don't get it wrong. She's not just your average Cinderella. She's one kick-ass princess!

Our heroine nonchalantly made her way through the crowd who seemed to be dazzled by her aura.

"Um…ano…hime-sama…" A random boy from the dumbfounded mob summoned all of his courage to isolate himself from the mesmerized crowd and face our heroine.

Sakura gradually slowed her pace and stopped in front of the timid boy before her. She gave him one of her famous deadpanned gazes.

The boy uncomfortably fidgeted and swallowed hard before returning the gaze. He took a single step backwards and bowed.

"Please go out with me!"

Silence.

There was a nagging tension on the atmosphere. Not a single individual dared to make a sound as they waited for the Pink Haired Cinderella to give her answer…

"Not interested."

…

Okay, so that's the answer.

And so our pink head heroine walked pass the dumbfounded boy whom she had just rejected. The crowd was mute; all eyes watching the retreating back of the Cinderella. Then their heads slowly turned to spare a sympathetic glance at the dumped guy.

"Poor guy…he's the 267th one Cinderella has dumped."

"Yeah…they just don't learn. She's just way too cool for them."

"You're right…I feel for them."

And little by little, the mob resumed to their respective businesses, leaving the still-flabbergasted poor boy on his petrified position.

.o.O.o.

"Now, where's Sakura?" A brown haired lady in her early forties asked impatiently as she fixed her hair in front of the mirror.

"I saw Sakura-san exit the mansion this morning. She told me that she's running an errand for Grandfather." A red haired girl retorted while flipping the page of the magazine at hand.

The addressed mother clicked her tongue and stood up from the stool she was sitting on. "That girl is trying to get father's attention. Hasn't she had enough of the townspeople?" she spat angrily.

"Unfortunately Mizuno-san, I'm not trying to get Grandfather's favor, for I already have it even before you became father's _second_ wife."

Mizuno froze. She nervously turned her head around and to her horror, she saw her stepdaughter. "Oh, Sakura-chan how long have you been there?" she asked sweetly, pulling out a phony smile.

"Long enough to hear your 'insights', oba-san." Sakura answered, smiling sardonically. This got her aunt speechless.

She smirked triumphantly and turned her heel. _That sure got her. Haha._ She laughed to herself and went upstairs to her room.

Meanwhile, back at the lounge…

The red haired girl approached her mother who was still dumbfounded from her defeat. Once again, she ended up speechless in front of her stepdaughter.

_Mother just never learns _the red head thought and waved a hand on her mother's face. "She went dead again…" the red haired girl sighed and scratched her head dumbly.

.o.O.o.

"You summoned me Your Majesty?"

The addressed person lifted his gaze from the stack of papers on his table to the person in front of him.

"Uh…hai, hai Tenjo. I want you to give me the profiles of the bachelors officially endorsed by the royal clans of Fire Nation."

The black haired man nodded and bowed. "Right away, Your Majesty."

A silver haired masked man standing beside the seated old man turned his head to the latter. "Sarutobi-sama, are you planning to…"

"Yes, Kakashi." The older one cut off his adviser's question with an abrupt answer. "I think it is the right time. I am not getting any younger, you know." he chuckled and leaned back to his wooden chair.

.o.O.o.

"Oh crap! I'm late!"

Successive hurried footfalls filled the corridors of Leaf High. The maker of the noise? None other than our pink head heroine!

The princess was running ungracefully along the hallway. She maneuvered her way to the right without decreasing her velocity when…

BUMP!

And she was ricocheted by the sudden impact. She hastily got to her feet and grabbed her things. She spared a glance at the guy who she bumped on for a few seconds but sped off nonetheless to her room. There's no time to waste. She's freaking late DAMN IT! No time to apologize!

"What the heck?" the guy groaned and got to his feet. He scratched his head and noticed a black leather wallet lying on the tiled pavement. He turned his head to look at where the girl had been but saw not a single trace of her. _Oh great! She left her wallet_ he mused and scratched his head exasperatedly.

.o.O.o.

"Sa-ku-ra-chaaaan!"

Our pink haired heroine vehemently threw her head to the cause of the noise.

The blonde boy who exclaimed suddenly slowed his pace to gulp but laugh sheepishly nonetheless at his friend's reaction. "Now, now Sakura-chan, don't tell me you got detention again?" he asked teasingly, walking by the pink head's side.

The Cinderella spared him an annoyed glance before heaving a very exasperated sigh. "Yeah. Stupid defective alarm clock of mine…didn't alarm on the supposed time."

Naruto let out an awfully loud guffaw.

Sakura threw him one of her 'this-dude-is-oh-so-insane' looks. "What's so funny?"

Naruto gradually ceased on his laughs and grinned at his best friend. "You're always funny Sakura-chan." He retorted which made Sakura roll her eyes.

"Whatever."

.o.O.o.

"Chotto matte kudasai, Sasuke-sama!"

A group of tall, masculine men in black was running after a raven-haired young man along the streets of Leafville.

_Damn these men_ the chased raven head cursed as he frantically ran towards an upcoming wall of busy crowd. He smirked at the sudden extending hand of help from fate and made his way through the crowd.

"Sasuke-sama! Don't go! Master Fugaku will punish us if you get away!" The men exclaimed as they gradually lost track of their young master.

Meanwhile across the sea of people…

The black haired lad finally got out of the suffocating crowd. _I'll never do this ever again!_ He told himself as he clung on a street light post for support all the while taking the time to regain his normal breathing pace. "I hate this life…" he muttered under his breath and lifted his face only to be greeted by an enticing smell of grilled steak coming from the restaurant before him. His stomach instantly growled just as he remembered that he had skipped breakfast and lunch due to his predicament. He straightened his posture and entered the restaurant.

.o.O.o.

"So Sakura-chan, when will you be officially crowned as the Emperor's heiress?" Naruto asked as they passed through Leafville's Town Center.

Sakura scratched her head. "I dunno. It's fine with me if I stay like this for the mean time. I actually enjoy this kind of life, you know." She answered.

Her blonde friend nodded in contemplation when something caught his eyes. "Hey, why are goons all around the town?"

"Hm?" Sakura turned her head to see a group of men in black walking around the town. A single man approached them.

"Excuse me but did you happen to see this lad?"

The goon shoved a photograph of a raven haired young man with onyx eyes in front of the two. The duo took a close look at the picture but failed to recognize someone in familiarity on those they have known or even seen to the person on the picture.

"Nope." They answered in unison.

"Uh…thanks. But if you happen to see him, please contact us." The man handed them a calling card. The man then bowed before them and walked towards his comrades.

Naruto looked at the card at his hand. "Uchiha Fugaku…" he read. "This name sounds kinda familiar…"

"He's the head of the famous royal clan of Uchiha - the legendary wealthy and powerful clan on the South of Fire Nation." Sakura interjected and started walking.

Naruto looked up and ran after her. "So, what's a royalty in the South doing here at Leafville?" he asked as they passed a chain of random shops.

"Maybe he's looking for his son. I heard that his last child is giving him much headache." She retorted as they took a right turn.

"Hmm…you seem to know a lot about this Sakura-chan."

Sakura smirked and dropped her head lazily to her right shoulder to look at Naruto. "Of course, I'm a princess after all."

"Haha…I almost forgot about that one." Naruto laughed sheepishly.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the street…

The raven haired lad stood up from his seat and left a wad of cash on the table. He was about to leave when the waiter called out to him.

"Wait sir! You forgot your change!"

"Keep it." He retorted bluntly and pushed the door open. He immediately caught the sight of his bodyguards. _Tsk, they're here_. He looked around and found an opening. He wasted no time and ran.

"Wait! That's Sasuke-sama!"

"Go get him!"

"Hai!"

Sasuke was running in full speed and turned a sharp turn to the left when…

SLAM!

Thud!

"Oww…"

"Sakura-chan, are you okay?"

He lifted his face to see that he had bumped on a girl. He immediately stood up from his previous sitting position and took a quick glance at his back. _Damn, they're here!_ He cursed and immediately took his leave.

Naruto hurled around. "Hey you bastard! Come back here and apologize to Sakura-chan!" he exclaimed but failed to make the boy stop and turn around.

"It's okay Naruto, I'm fine." Sakura said and tried to stand up, only to fail when she felt a bolt of pain from her knees.

"Sakura-chan!"

Naruto immediately caught Sakura who was clutching her bruised knee.

"That bastard, he sure is going to pay for this…" Naruto gritted as a group of men passed them.

"Wait! Sasuke-sama!"

"So, it's the Uchiha bastard. He's such a prick." Naruto spat and bent slightly. He placed his hands under Sakura's knees and back.

"Hey…oi, Naruto…What are you doing?"

Naruto effortlessly lifted her from the ground, bridal style. "Duh…I'm carrying you, princess."

A blush crept from the pink haired princess's cheeks. "Put me down now Naruto! I can walk on my own!" she exclaimed and wriggled free from her best friend's arms.

"Nope. You're so stubborn Sakura-chan. I'll carry you home." He retorted and started walking towards her house.

"…" Sakura gradually stopped struggling and looked down. "Am I heavy?" she asked softly all of a sudden.

Naruto looked down at her and pulled a charming smile. "You weigh like a feather." He grinned.

"Yeah right." Sakura muttered and hid a smile. _Naruto's always here for me._ She mused and leaned her head on her best friend's warm chest. She eventually dropped her eyelids and relished the moment. _That's why I like this kind of life…_

.o.O.o.

"Your Majesty, here are the profiles of the bachelors endorsed by the royal clans."

"Thank you Tenjo, you may take your leave."

The black haired man bowed politely and exited the room.

"Hmm…let's see…" The Emperor opened the envelope and pulled out the papers. He looked at them one by one.

"Hyuuga Neji of Hyuuga Clan…hmm…an ideal bachelor, I may say." He commented and looked at the next profile.

"Nara Shikamaru of Nara Clan…" he read aloud.

"The famous genius with an IQ of over 200…" Kakashi added.

"Hm…very interesting." The emperor said and flipped over the page.

"Inuzuka Kiba of Inuzuka Clan…a very friendly clan." He said and nodded. He then looked at the next profile.

"Aburame Shino of Aburame Clan…" he read.

"The famous clan of weird bug fetishes…" The Emperor's adviser commented and snickered.

"Haha…you're right Kakashi, but Aburames are indeed good leaders." Sarutobi added and looked at the last profile.

"Hmm…Uchiha Sasuke of Uchiha Clan…"

"The Uchiha rebel…" The silver haired man said.

"How interesting…" Sarutobi smirked. "So, Fugaku decided to endorse his rebellious son eh…let's see…" he put down the files and turned to his adviser.

"Kakashi, set everything." He said and stood up from his seat. "We are officially crowning Sakura tomorrow. I want her to live here from now on."

"Yes Your Majesty!"

.o.O.o.

_Once upon a time, there lived a lovely maiden. Her mother died after giving birth to her and her father followed after marrying another woman. Thus, the maiden was left with her stepmother together with a stepsister._

_The maiden lived the way she wanted it to be. She never agreed to have her stepmother control her own life for according to her philosophy, no one controls a person's life except for the person himself and the Ultimate. So the maiden grew up independently._

_She never cared for money, not like her stepmother. All she ever wanted was freedom._

_One fateful day while walking down the streets of their town, she heard an announcement from the king declaring that a Grand Ball was about to occur and that, all of the maidens on the town were requested to attend._

_And so it clicked. Being able to marry the prince spells F-R-E-E-D-O-M! _

_The maiden then immediately headed back home to prepare herself for the ball._

_When she entered their abode, she informed her stepmother about the matter of her attending the ball. The stepmother seemed against it for the maiden was a possible candidate for the prince's bride. And the selfish stepmother wanted her own daughter to be the prince's bride…for money and for the luxuries._

_So the stepmother made a plan to keep the maiden from attending the ball._

_The night of the Grand Ball came. The maiden came down from her room in utter beauty. The stepmother was intimidated by her loveliness. That added more reason for her to prevent the maiden from attending the ball._

_So the stepmother initiated her plan. When they reached the carriage, the stepmother asked the maiden for a favor. The stepmother requested the maiden to go to her room and get her silver pouch which she had apparently forgotten to bring. The maiden, being completely clueless about the stepmother's evil scheme, complied with the request._

_Unknowingly for the maiden, the stepmother stealthily followed her as she went back to their abode. And when the maiden spotted the silver pouch on a night table in her stepmother's room, the door instantly closed. The maiden hurried to the closed door and tried to open it but with no avail. On the other side of the door, the cruel stepmother was viciously laughing as she held the key to the door. She then exited the house and headed to the ball with her daughters._

_On the dim locked up room, the maiden tried her best to open the door. After a couple of futile attempts, she leaned on the door and closed her eyes. So this was what her stepmother was planning, she thought. She immediately opened her eyes and pulled out a smirk._

_Her stepmother should know that it takes more than these to stop her._

_The maiden stood up and went to the window. She was on the second floor of their house but this matter did not falter her spirits. The maiden stepped on the window sill and took a deep breath. _

_She then jumped off._

.o.O.o.

Pen up.

Smirk.

"Now that's what I call story."

Triumphant laughs.

KNOCK! KNOCK!

Head up.

"Come in."

The door of the dimly lit room opened, revealing a red haired bespectacled young woman with a tall glass of milk in her hands.

"Ah…Sakura-san…I have you your glass of cold milk." The red head muttered as she entered the room.

The pink haired lass sitting atop the bed set aside the things on her hands and reached for the glass of milk she was offered with. She ungraciously drank it down.

"Arigato Karin." She uttered and handed the red haired girl the empty glass.

Karin nodded and was about to exit the room when the pink haired girl remembered something.

"Oh…and Karin, take those." She pointed out a laundry basket filled with dirty clothes. "Be sure to be able to wash them tomorrow for I'm running out of clean clothes…" the pink haired lass muttered as she laid flat on her back.

The red haired girl nodded timidly and went further inside the dim room to gather the basket of dirty clothes. She then lifted it on her side and walked towards the door.

"Oyasumi!" the pink head chirped as the red haired girl was about to close the door.

Karin bowed her head a bit before completely closing the door. "Oyasumi nasai, Sakura-san."

.o.O.o.

They call her princess.

They call her Cinderella.

But she's different from any other princess…

And she's totally different from Cinderella…

Because unlike Cinderella, she stands up on her own. Unlike Cinderella, she doesn't let anyone do everything they want her to do. She has her own will. And she lives her life the way she wants it to be.

And thus, Haruno Sakura was labeled…

…the Pink Haired Cinderella

_.end of the chapter._

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Some facts you might already know:

Hime – princess

Oba-san – usually used to address old women, also used to address an aunt or a grandmother

Chotto matte – wait ("kudasai" equates to please; for courtesy)

Oyasumi – goodnight ("-nasai" is added for politeness)

**05/26/12: Chapter 1 editing complete**


	2. Her Prince Charming

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Naruto and Cinderella.

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**The Pink Haired Cinderella**

_Chapter 2: Her Prince Charming_

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_Midst her silent sobs, a lady in shimmering dress and beautiful pixie wings appeared._

_The weeping maiden was surprised at the lady's sudden appearance. The winged lady flew closer to the maiden and gently wiped her tears away. She then informed the maiden that she was her fairy godmother and she was there to help her attend the ball._

_The maiden looked down at her dress. She told her fairy godmother that she could not go to the ball with such unkempt dress. The fairy godmother told the maiden not to worry and leave it all to her._

_With a swish of the fairy godmother's magic wand, the tattered dress turned into a very elegant gown and her disheveled hair was gathered back into a neat bun. Another swish turned a squash into a majestic carriage and mice into charioteers. Lastly, the fairy godmother gave the fair maiden a pair of glass slippers to complement her dress._

_Before letting the maiden go, the fairy godmother informed her of one important thing. 'Go before the clock strikes twelve, for everything would vanish at midnight...' The maiden nodded and thanked her fairy godmother wholeheartedly before they took off._

_And as the carriage made its way towards the castle, the maiden held a satiated and radiant smile on her lips..._

_...for her dreams were finally coming true..._

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Bright rays of morning light slipped pass through the edges of the heavily tinted curtains of our pink haired heroine's room. It was quite dim inside her room despite the brightness of the lovely early morning sun outside. The walls of her room were painted inky black with glow in the dark graffito, looking much like a moonless starry spring sky.

Surprisingly, our princess here is an anime otaku.

Posters of various gothic anime like Jigoku Shoujo and Death Note were sticking on the walls. Even her covers and blankets have the chibi form of Nakahara Sunako of the anime Yamato Nadeshiko: Shichi Henge on it.

Definitely an anime addict…

KNOCK! KNOCK!

Our Cinderella began stirring as soon as loud knocks were heard from her door.

"Sakura-chan! Are you awake?"

"Mmm…" she muffled grudgingly before cracking a single eye open. _What the hell…its holiday for crying out loud!_ She clicked her tongue and sluggishly sat up. She scratched her head exasperatedly as successive knocks banged her door. She heaved a sigh and went to the door nonetheless.

"Sa—" her stepmother cut off her own statement and her mid-air knock when the door suddenly opened revealing a very pissed Sakura in her black pajamas.

"What is it oba-san?"

Mizuno pulled out a devious smile. "Sakura-chan, dear…"

Sakura fought hard to prevent her eyes from rolling._ Dear your face _she spat inwardly.

"…Kakashi-sama is waiting for you downstairs."

Sakura nodded bluntly. "Okay, I'll be there in ten minutes." she deadpanned before slamming the door in her aunt's face.

As soon as the door closed, Mizuno's lips curved into a what-they-call-smile twitched. "How rude of that girl…" she hissed and indignantly stomped her way downstairs.

.o.O.o.

"What the hell is this? Let go of me!"

Bellows of protest and frustration of a certain Uchiha Sasuke filled the spacious velvet room. Confinements of various kinds were around him, completely binding him on his seat in the middle of the unfurnished velvet room.

"The hell…" he cursed as he tried to struggle free from his incarceration. He vehemently threw his head to the direction of an armed man on the door.

"Oi!" he growled at the man.

The masked man looked at him.

"Take off these confinements. Now!"

The man shook his head politely. "I'm sorry Sasuke-sama, but the Master strictly told us to keep you under these confinements to prevent you from escaping again."

"Che. That stupid old man." He spat and hung his head low in futility. _I really abhor him _he thought and gritted his teeth.

"Master is here!"

"Open the door!"

Sasuke yanked his face to the direction of the door being opened. He threw a wrathful glare at the man who just entered the room.

"Uchiha Fugaku." He spat vehemently.

The man who just entered took a couple of steps towards the younger boy. His emotionless charcoal eyes met Sasuke's incensed onyx ones.

"Long time no see, my son."

.o.O.o.

"Kakashi-san! Sorry to keep you waiting." Sakura greeted as she ran down the stairs. She was clad in one of her favorite loose black dresses with a white long sleeved top underneath. She had put on her striped black & white knee-length socks and a pair of white doll shoes. Her pink bangs were held back by a white hairband.

The silver haired man put down the cup of tea he was offered with and stood up, bowing low at the sight of Sakura. "Your Highness, the carriage is waiting for you. You would be living in the Central Palace today onwards. Tenjo will take care of your things. We will pack them la—"

"What?" Mizuno exclaimed and stood up from the sofa. "You're taking my precious daughter?"

Sakura's left eye twitched at the use of words. _Oba-san sounds weird with those words._ She scoffed inwardly and leaned on the wooden railings of the staircase, all the while crossing her arms on her chest. _Ooh…one of oba-san's drama scenes again. Haha. Wish I had popcorn. _She smirked and watched Mizuno pull of her act.

Kakashi faced the brunette who was trying her hardest to make her face look convincingly worried.

_Oh my, I'm overstretching my freshly-Botoxed face! I should drop by my dermatologist later._ Mizuno made a mental note and flew her hands on her face. "Please…don't take away Sakura! Only she and my daughter Karin are left for me. I've lost my husband; please don't take my step-daughter away! She's already like my real daughter! Onegai, Kakashi-sama…" she cried.

Sakura suppressed a laugh. Her hands were already itching to applaud such an entertaining scene. Her aunt was such a good actress._ She needs to look more natural though_ she told herself._ Her face looked more of constipated when she tried to look anxious…I guess that's the effect of too much Botox. Haha._ She bit her lower lip in a desperate attempt to suppress a guffaw.

"Mizuno-san, we are very much grateful for your taking care of Sakura-hime. But His Majesty wants the princess to live in the palace. You should know very well that she is the only heiress to the throne." Kakashi explained as she tried to calm down the crying Mizuno.

"But…" the brunette lady was cut off when Kakashi gestured an armored guardsman to pass him a thick brown envelope.

Mizuno's black eyes immediately lightened up.

"Please take these." Kakashi said and handed Mizuno the envelope. He took a step backwards. "That is just a simple way of His Majesty of showing utmost gratitude for your taking care of Sakura-hime. We, from the palace, in the name of His Majesty thank you for everything you have done for the princess."

Mizuno hugged the thick envelope possessively and quickly changed her mood. "Oh, that's nothing Kakashi-sama." She chirped and grabbed Sakura's arm. "You're here to fetch my step-daughter right? Here, please take good care of her." She babbled out and pushed Sakura towards Kakashi.

_Now, that was quick._ Sakura mused and scratched her head. _How boring oba-san…_she pursed her lips in dismay at her stepmother's lack of consistency.

"Thank you very much Mizuno-san. Rest assured we will take delicate care of Her Highness." Kakashi stated politely and bowed.

Mizuno seemed too dazzled to react with the money on her hands.

They then head out leaving a very blithesome Mizuno on the Haruno mansion.

"Thank you Kakashi-sama! Please visit again! Take good care of Sakura-chan!" the brunette waved in a toothy grin. _And I'll take good care of this money, baby! Haha._

On the carriage…

Sakura was contented that she finally needs not to see Mizuno's hypocritical smiles every morning ever again. _Though I'll miss arguing with her. Lol. Oba-san's face whenever she gets defeated on an argument is priceless!_ She giggled and turned to look at the silver haired man before her.

"Hime-sama." Kakashi acknowledged with a smile as he caught her gaze. "His Majesty prepared a banquet for you. Today, you will officially be crowned as His Majesty's heiress."

"Eh?" was the only word Sakura can utter. "As in today?" she asked in disbelief.

"Yes." Kakashi replied with a friendly smile beneath his mask.

_But…am I ready to be officially…Princess Sakura?_ She asked herself and looked at her reflection on the glass window of the carriage. She gulped, hard. _Well, I'll try my best._

.o.O.o.

"I'll give you your freedom. I'll give you everything you need, everything you want." Uchiha Fugaku spoke calmly as he bent down to his son.

Sasuke's incensed glare at the older Uchiha did not falter though his previously gritted teeth somewhat relaxed. He kept looking daggers at his father before finally retorting. "What do you want?"

Fugaku smirked. That was the answer he had been waiting for. He shoved his right hand inside his tux and it resurfaced with a device of various buttons. He then pushed several buttons.

Instantly, the incarcerations on Sasuke loosened. The raven haired lad stood up from the chair and shrugged off the loose confinements around him.

Fugaku stood up from his bent position and turned his heel. "Follow me." He ordered and walked out of the velvet room.

Sasuke scowled at his father's retreating back before trailing behind him.

.o.O.o.

"Sakura-hime, we will leave you in Hitomi-san's care for the meantime. People from all the villages in Fire Nation will be gathered in front of the palace this evening for your official debut as a princess. I will be back to collect you later." Kakashi said and bowed before walking off.

Sakura took the moment to digest her surroundings. It was her first time to enter the Central Palace. Sure the Konoha Palace which was located in Leafville was marvelous but this one is spectacular! Everything looked like they have been standing magnanimously elegant even during the time of the first Emperor. She made a complete 180 degrees turn to check the whole place out. She spotted several paintings, old crystal chandeliers, and ivory statues all over the place._ Classic._ She thought.

"Hime-sama." said a gentle-looking old woman who Sakura surmised was a chamberlain called out and curtsied at the princess. "My name is Hitomi. I will be your handmaid for the time being until Your Highness get to choose among the maids in the palace." Hitomi smiled and requested Sakura to follow her.

Sakura nodded and followed.

.o.O.o.

_Woah!_ Was all Sakura could think. Her bright verdant eyes studied the room with utmost enthusiasm. She was like a little girl who had just entered the amusement park for the first time. _Sugoi…_she mused and scrutinized the whole room. It was indeed stunning. The royal red walls were embedded with gold plated fleur-de-lis and ornaments made up of silver, emeralds, sapphires and rubies. The floor was adorned with shiny velvet carpet embroidered with painstaking classic designs. Looking up, pristine white high ceiling which holds several crystal chandeliers greets the eyes. The spacious room was occupied with a majestic royal red bed, a splendid wardrobe, a classy dresser, a nightstand, and a glass table.

"Hime-sama, this will be your room."

Sakura tore her gaze away from the stupendous sight before her to Hitomi. Her jaws dropped. "For real?" she asked in disbelief.

Hitomi smiled and nodded. "Of course Hime-sama."

KNOCK! KNOCK!

The old lady excused herself from the still flabbergasted princess to attend to the one who knocked on the door.

"Hitomi-san, Ichiyama-san is here." A random servant announced as Hitomi nodded.

"Alright then, thank you very much." She said and closed the door. "Hime-sama…"

Sakura broke free from her trance to look at Hitomi.

"The dressmaker has arrived, Your Highness. We will have to prepare you a dress." The old lady pulled out a makeshift scroll from her uniform's pocket and read the list. "Then after that, Shizumi-san will teach you the basic table etiquettes, and then Haru-san will teach you the proper way to dance, then Shi…"

"Ano…Hitomi-san…"

Hitomi gradually stopped her rants to look at the princess who seemed to be a bit paled by the things she had said.

"Are you sure we're going to finish all those today? I mean…well…aren't those too many to do for just one day?" she asked, hoping that Hitomi would rather stop and consider her brilliant point and agree and…

"Of course Your Highness, you're the princess after all!"

And Sakura wished she never asked.

.o.O.o.

The most awaited night came. People of Fire Nation gathered in front of the Central Palace. All anticipated to see the Pink Haired Cinderella.

"I'm dying to see the princess in a gown…oh, so cool!"

"Yeah, I can't wait to see her!"

Random rants filled the crowd. In the middle of the frenzied mob, a certain blonde boy has his own world. His cerulean eyes were fixed on something at hand.

"Oi Naruto, what are you doing?" A brunette with her locks collected in two buns asked curiously and snooped down on the blonde's side.

"At last!" Naruto exclaimed and held the thing on his right hand high.

"A camera?" the bunned girl inquired at the boy who seemed to be too enthusiastic about the gadget.

Naruto grinned at her. "I'm gonna capture every moment of Sakura-chan's debut as a princess with this! Haha! I can't miss even a second of it!" he exclaimed and laughed triumphantly.

The brunette sweatdropped. "Oh right, you're Saku-chan's No. 1 fan after all." She commented dryly.

"Of course Tenten!" the blonde retorted and smiled. "She's my best_est_ friend and the first person to appreciate me for who I am." He whispered and smiled bittersweetly.

Tenten noticed the sentimental atmosphere and hit Naruto square on the back.

"Oww!" Naruto complained and clapped a single hand at his back, nursing the aching part. He whipped his face at Tenten's direction and pouted. "That was uncalled for!"

Tenten fanned her right hand at her face and grinned slyly. "You're just being way too dramatic. It grosses me out." She said bluntly and stuck her tongue out.

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Whatever…"

Screams.

"OMG! It's Sakura-hime!"

"For real! She's SOOO cool!"

"Woot! I love you Hime-sama!"

The two turned their heads to the cause of the commotion.

"Sakura-chan…"

.o.O.o.

Haruno Sakura stood in front of approximately a hundred thousand inhabitants of Fire Nation. _Woah…never thought that the people of Fire Nation are this many._ She mused and approached the seat beside her grandfather.

She was clad in an off-shoulder royal blue ball gown. The dress fit her slender body perfectly. It was adorned by a simple silver ribbon tied at her back and some silver beads embroidered on the upper part of the gown in a complex flower pattern. She wore white arm length gloves, a silver cherry blossom pendant necklace and a pair of silver earrings that matched her necklace. Her short pink hair was collected in a single bun clamped by a silver barrette with some of her bangs loosely framing her fair, heart-shaped face.

She definitely looked like a princess.

"Good evening Sakura-chan. You look wonderful tonight." The Emperor commented as Sakura took her seat.

Sakura smiled. "You also look wonderful, Grandfather." She retorted before averting her gaze to the crowd. Her ears caught the rants of the people, especially those of the Lifeville's townspeople. She heaved a sigh. _Oh, they never change._ Her emerald eyes lit up when she saw a familiar figure of a blonde cheeky boy and a brunette girl in buns. She waved at them and offered a warm smile. Her gesture made the crowd wild.

The people gradually ceased their hullabaloos and calmed down as soon as Kakashi stood at the center of the palace's patio. He cleared his throat and adjusted the microphone.

"Good evening minna-san!" He greeted and started. "Thank you for coming to Sakura-hime's coronation! Now, may we call on our gallant Emperor to give his speech and official baptismal."

Sarutobi stood up from his seat and went to Kakashi. The silver haired man bowed to the Emperor before stepping aside and leaving the floor to His Majesty.

"Minna-san, this evening, I would like you to witness the official debut of my heiress…" he turned his head to Sakura's direction and ushered the latter to stand up. Kakashi carried the pillow cushioning the tiara for the princess and stood next to the Emperor.

Sakura obliged and went to his grandfather. She held a low and graceful bow before the Emperor.

"Haruno Sakura, the only daughter of the late Prince Sarutobi Masayuki, do you promise to uphold the laws and the principles your forefathers had established; promote peace and justice; and dedicate your life to Fire Nation?"

Sakura smiled and said, "Yes, Your Majesty."

"Then, by the power vested in me, I now declare you Princess of Fire Nation and the heiress to the throne." The Emperor, Sarutobi Hiruzen, took the tiara from Kakashi and placed it atop Sakura's head.

The Emperor took Sakura's right hand and faced the crowd.

Kakashi put aside the pillow and went for the microphone. "May I present to you, the heiress to the throne: Princess Sakura!"

The crowd broke into a loud cheer.

Sakura bowed and looked at his grandfather.

Sarutobi smiled at her. "Omedetou…" he greeted.

"Arigatou-gozaimasu, Grandfather." She thanked and smiled before facing the crowd and expressing her utmost gratitude.

.o.O.o.

"Tenjo-san, are all the bachelors present?" Kakashi inquired a black haired man.

Tenjo looked at the guest list on hand and shook his head. "I'm afraid not Kakashi-sama. Uchiha Sasuke-sama has not yet appeared."

Kakashi clicked his tongue. "Crap, the introduction of the bachelors would be next." He hissed.

"Kakashi-sama, the next part of the public declaration would start in a minute!" a random guy informed the masked man before returning to his work.

"Hai, hai. I'll be there in a second!" He said and went to the patio. _Never thought that the Uchiha brat would be such a problem.._. He clicked his tongue and faced the crowd.

.o.O.o.

"Ba…bachelors?" Sakura asked in disbelief and whipped her face to her Grandfather's direction. "Grandfather, what's the meaning of this?"

Sarutobi let a wholehearted laugh. "Gomen my dear. I forgot to inform you about it but you'll have to choose among the bachelors endorsed by the royal families of Fire Nation."

Sakura's head dropped animatedly. _I should have known that being a princess spells T-R-O-U-B-L-E!_ she thought grimly but managed to regain her composure. _No, I must not be a failure to Grandfather..._ she then remembered her parents and smiled adamantly. _For Father and Mother I'll do this without regrets!_ She nodded to herself and turned her head to the Master of Ceremony.

"Before we introduce the Bachelors, let us request our Hime-sama to come here to the center."

_Me?_ She asked dumbly at Kakashi who nodded in response.

_Who else is the Hime-sama…duh…_Inner Sakura murmured.

_Shut up._ Outer Sakura retorted and managed to pull out one of her best smiles as she approached the edge of the patio.

The crowd went wild at the princess's smile.

Sakura's right eye twitched. _People these days are…_she paused to think of an adjective that would best describe them. She spotted a familiar bowl-cut haired guy with a red bandana wrapped on his head with the capital letters of her name and a heart on it waving a huge flag with the words: 'You are the spring of my life' _Lee-san…_she shuddered inwardly at her stalker since like forever slash classmate. Her gaze shifted to some other people she knew by face and spotted several of the guys who confessed to her shouting things like 'Sakura-hime! Marry me!' _...creepy_ she finished her statement and immediately returned her attention to the main event before she spots anything creepier than what she already saw.

"Okay then, let us begin." Kakashi said and started. "The first Bachelor comes from a prestigious, royal clan of archaic Byakugan Dojutsu lineage in the West of Fire Nation."

The spotlight opened and revealed a guy with long brown hair and pupil-less eyes wearing a beige and brown hakama. He stood professionally and looked very serious.

"Let us give a round of applause to Hyuuga Neji-sama!"

Claps.

_He looks nice…_Inner Sakura commented.

_Decent, dude._ Outer Sakura interjected.

Inner Sakura rolled her eyes._ That's the same thing…_

"Our second Bachelor is the prized prodigy with an IQ of over 200 of the royal clan in the East of Fire Nation."

All heads turned to look at a guy, who was yawning inelegantly, clad in a gray tux and had a pineapple like hairstyle.

"Presenting, Nara Shikamaru-sama!"

Claps.

_Looks very lazy…_Inner Sakura commented dryly.

"The third Bachelor is from the royal clan in the Northwest of Fire Nation who are famous as being the best dog breeders in the world."

The spotlight showed an eccentric guy with brown hair and palpably large fangs in a white tux being followed by an enormous white dog.

"All hands to Inuzuka Kiba-sama!"

Inner Sakura sweatdropped. _What's up with the dog?_

"The fourth Bachelor is from the royal clan in the Northeast of Fire Nation best known for their beneficial research and development centers set to utilize the potentials of bugs."

And bugs suddenly popped out of nowhere. The crowd turned their heads to look at the black haired, sunglass-ed bachelor clad in a dark green hakama.

_Okay, what's up with the weird guys? _Inner Sakura deadpanned.

"Let's all welcome, Aburame Shino-sama!"

Claps.

Sakura dropped her head ungraciously to her right shoulder and facepalmed.

"What a joke…" she murmured all the while carelessly taking few steps backwards…

…only to have the heel of her right glass slipper fail to have contact with the alabaster floor of the patio.

_Uh-oh…_she thought as she felt her body gradually lose balance. And so, gravity took the rest of the work.

Horrified screams.

"Sakura-hime!" Kakashi exclaimed.

"Sakura-chan!" The Emperor gasped in horror and stood up from his seat.

On the other side of the dumbstruck crowd, a pair of cerulean eyes widened. "Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed and ran towards the falling princess.

"Naruto!" Tenten exclaimed and ran after her blonde friend.

_I can make it…I'll catch you Sakura-chan!_ "Sakura-chan!" Naruto exclaimed and ran as fast as he could.

But she was falling with great acceleration. And even Tenten thought that Naruto would not be able to make it on time to catch her.

_No. No. No!_ "SAKURA-CHAAAN!" Naruto cried as hot tears welled from his eyes. He shut his eyes hard and ran as fast as he could when…

The horrified screams ceased to exist.

Silence.

Naruto immediately cracked open his eyes and fell on his knees.

.o.O.o.

All Sakura felt was the pull of gravity. Then he heard Naruto scream. She was sure he was crying. She shut her eyes tight and braced herself for the impact of her fall. She was looking forward for the violent pain to meet her back but all she felt was…

…warm strong arms.

_Wait…what the hell is going on?_ She bravely cracked open a single eye. Her other eye instantly followed suit and went wide as saucers.

Flabbergasted green orbs met cool onyx ones.

"Konban wa, Hime-sama." The owner of the beautiful onyx eyes greeted.

…

Silence once more.

…

"Uh…-cough-…and the Last Bachelor…" Kakashi interjected to break the sudden astonishment. "…from the legendary royal clan of Sharingan Dojutsu lineage in the South of Fire Nation who were also the pioneers of the modernization of our country…"

The spotlight made its way to the gorgeous tall lad with sleek blue-black hair in a black tux, carrying the princess in his arms.

"Uchiha Sasuke-sama!"

Whistles.

Loud cheers.

Thunderous applause.

Sakura's jaw dropped as she stared back at her savior who simply smirked in return.

_...Uchiha Sasuke?_

_.end of the chapter._

o

O

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Hello lovelies! Yes, a repost. I just found some minor typos and grammatical errors so I resorted to editing this one. Nothing much to change, just the typos so the story is still basically intact. Chapter 3 would be coming soon…if my lazy ass syndrome won't trigger. Haha.

Yes dearies, I know Sarutobi Hiruzen isn't really connected to Sakura in the anime/manga but hey, this is a fanfiction and you can do basically everything you like in a fanfic right? Lol. The reason why Sakura's surname is different from his father and grandfather would be revealed in the succeeding chapters.

Anyways, hopefully this time I'll be able to finish this fic. Please help me my dearies. Your reviews would make me write. PLEASE READ AND REVIEW. Thankies!

Lots of love,

Haruki

Some facts you might already know:

Otaku – someone who is over engrossed with an interest (esp. anime, manga or video games)

Chibi – Japanese colloquial term for small child/person; particularly used as a drawing style in the anime/manga industry

Onegai – please

Sugoi – great/awesome

Minna – everyone

Omedetou – congratulations ("-gozaimasu:" is added for formality)

Arigatou – thank you

Gomen – shorter form of Gomenasai; sorry

Dojutsu – genetic ability that utilizes the eyes

Hakama – Japanese traditional clothing worn by men

Konban wa – Good evening

**05/27/12: Chapter 2 editing complete**


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